Hwanju
It seems the treatment I receive keeps getting better and better.
In De Meca, Bagan had only ever stayed at inns. In De Marinda, he had only spent the final night in the castle. Yet this time he found himself living entirely within De Pruna Castle. The reason was Daphne’s treatment. While Arien alone would have been enough for the task, Bagan refused to let her stay there by herself. If they were going to stay somewhere, they would all stay together. Thanks to that decision, he now lounged in a spacious room.
It wasn’t quite as extravagant as the one in De Marinda, but it still contained every comfort, decorated with high-quality furnishings. The overall atmosphere felt elegantly antique, far removed from any common inn.
“You’re right. It’s probably because Arien is with us this time, but it’s nice not having to bother with an inn.”
Sally agreed with Bagan, adding that she rather liked the room’s refined ambiance.
Plop.
“Phew~ A room like this? I’ll take it any day.”
Bagan declared that comfort was king and collapsed onto the bed. He wasn’t exhausted, yet the day had drained something out of him. Sleep refused to come, but his eyes closed on their own as he surrendered to rest.
“Again today?”
Sally asked, noting it was a familiar scene.
“This bed is so soft I feel like I’m going to sink straight through it. What can I do?”
Bagan yawned with a tired expression, claiming he had no choice. Sally shook her head and moved to the prepared desk.
“Arien, shall we read together?”
“Yes, sister.”
The pair left Bagan sprawled out and took their seats, opening the books they had yet to finish. While they read, Bagan lay with his eyes closed, lost in thought.
Come to think of it, when exactly did Arien become a Queen Slime?
It might not have been important, but the question suddenly nagged at him. He hadn’t been able to ask earlier while she focused on the treatment, but now he could.
That was the first time I’ve ever seen her so passionate.
The way Arien had concentrated on Daphne’s treatment—far beyond even her usual focus when analyzing herbs—had been nothing short of astonishing.
I can’t hold it in anymore.
No longer able to contain his curiosity, Bagan called out to Arien, who sat with her back turned, absorbed in her book.
“Arien, there’s something I want to ask you.”
By the time he spoke, Bagan had risen to his knees on the bed. That alone showed just how much the question bothered him.
Sally glanced over with mild surprise at his sudden intensity. Arien looked at him, nodded as though she had already read his mind, and answered.
“You wish to know when it began, correct?”
Bagan blinked, startled that she had seen through him so easily, then nodded with a flustered expression.
“It started after I began reflecting on the books with Sister Sally. Simply consuming them granted knowledge, but pondering them allowed me to internalize far more information. Then, suddenly, realization came. ‘If it is now.’ That was the thought. I still do not fully understand the sensation itself. Yet it appeared unbidden, and I became like this. There is no compulsive urge, however. It seems the presence or absence of the blessing influenced the outcome.”
She had already analyzed her own condition perfectly and had anticipated a day like this might come, organizing every relevant detail in her mind beforehand.
It was then that Sally cut in.
“What are you two even talking about? Is Arien no longer Arien?”
She clearly hadn’t followed a word and asked with visible urgency.
Bagan realized they had left her out of the conversation and quickly explained.
“Arien’s species evolved from slime to Queen Slime. According to her, it’s thanks to you.”
Even after hearing it, Sally blinked in confusion. She might have been too shocked to process it.
“Wait, wait—so what exactly changed? She still looks like regular Arien to me.”
She seemed to have momentarily forgotten Arien was a slime at all and simply couldn’t accept the evolution into a Queen Slime. Bagan had no choice but to nod.
“The room may be too small.”
Arien understood his meaning at once.
Bagan’s nod had been a request for her to show Sally the true form of a Queen Slime. Arien hesitated, warning that her full size would exceed the room’s capacity.
“Make it smaller than usual. About the size of one person.”
Bagan adjusted the request. Arien began transforming immediately.
Gurgle. Gurgle!
Her body warped, green liquid bubbling and shifting until it formed a droplet shape.
“This is a Queen Slime? The old Arien could do this much.”
“Of course. But this is only the beginning.”
Gurgle! Gurgle!
Just as Bagan said, the real display started now. Arien freely exercised her Queen Slime abilities, expelling multiple original-sized slimes from her body. She had created several clones at once. Soon the entire assigned room was packed with Arien’s duplicate slimes.
“Ah, so that’s what Queen Slime means. She creates and controls every slime.”
“Correct. She could even become two separate beings.”
Bagan suggested she try it.
“Oh, an excellent idea.”
Gurgle!
Arien gathered every scattered clone and formed another version of herself. Once the mass reached human size, she shaped it into her own appearance. The transformation succeeded perfectly. Now there were two Ariens.
“In that case……”
“There are two Ariens.”
They finished each other’s sentences as though they shared one mind. Sally could only stare in delighted astonishment.
“Our two precious cuties!”
She rushed forward and pulled both of them into a tight embrace.
“Ubu bu.”
“It is suffocating.”
Their reactions differed, yet somehow remained perfectly in character.
“Becoming two isn’t the only thing. She can now transform into sizes that exceed normal limits and send her clones to act independently.”
That was what Bagan had been considering. She could remain as the pharmacist Arien while creating a Neo Shark clone if needed, or even a Hillan Bear clone in an emergency. It went beyond simply gaining another fighter; the possibilities were endless.
Since she would need to focus on Daphne’s treatment for the next several days, she might not have been able to join him against the underworld. But this solved every problem.
I can leave a clone to treat Daphne while the main body comes with us.
In every way, Arien becoming a Queen Slime was nothing but good news.
“Now, both of you need to read. Sit down quickly.”
In the midst of everything, Sally even tried to make the clone study as well.
“There is truly no need……”
“There is not.”
Arien attempted to refuse, but Sally ignored her completely. In the end, they witnessed the bizarre yet charming sight of two Ariens sitting side by side, each absorbed in a different book.
The next morning, Bagan and his companions sought out Gruon once again. In truth, they were looking for Daphne. Arien had said the medicine’s effects were nearly spent, so they moved quickly. They now stood inside Gruon’s office.
“Please drink the recovery potion again today.”
Arien devoted herself completely to Daphne’s treatment. Watching her, Bagan couldn’t help but smile. She had transformed into the form she admired most and was doing what she loved most. The sight of her happiness warmed him.
Setting those feelings aside, he sat drinking tea with Gruon. There was something they needed to discuss.
“The underworld, you say……”
“Yes. That is why I came to De Pruna. I intend to uproot every last one of them—from the Sog Kingdom through the lawless zones and all the way to the Bolton Empire.”
“Even so… our De Pruna has never truly had what one could call an underworld. At most, perhaps a few seedy taverns with heavy atmospheres. But even those we couldn’t touch. The Silver Eagle Legion visits them frequently to relieve stress, and they’ve never caused any real trouble.”
“That much I can overlook. But if there’s anything else, I want to know.”
“Anything else… That’s right! There was that.”
Gruon’s expression and tone grew heavy, as though the matter truly troubled him. He continued.
“Bagan, have you ever heard of Hwanju?”
Bagan turned the name over in his mind.
Hwanju, Hwanju… Hwanju?!
His eyes snapped wide open as the memory surfaced.
“It’s a hallucinogenic liquor.”
“Exactly. Much like a drug.”
Bagan knew of it only because of a particular episode in the game. When that quest unfolded, an entire village had been destroyed because of this very drink.
Hwanju was brewed using the Epiteth flower, which infused it with hallucinogenic compounds. The real horror lay in the fact that those same compounds contained a slow-acting poison and an addictive agent that triggered incurable mental illness. Anyone who tasted it could never forget the flavor. They would crave it endlessly until, one day, they crossed an invisible threshold and began hallucinating even in daily life. In that constant delirious state, they would murder their families, slaughter young livestock, and burn down their own homes.
The worst part was how difficult it was to detect in the early stages. The afflicted appeared completely normal—until the moment they weren’t.
“Don’t tell me that liquor is being sold in the taverns……!”
“We cannot confirm that yet. However, soldiers discovered some in the warehouse of one such establishment. It’s possible someone has already consumed it.”
Merely discovering it was an extremely grave issue. Hwanju possessed the terrifying ability to silently destroy a village, a city, or even an entire nation.
“For now, I have ordered the Silver Eagle Legion soldiers to avoid the taverns temporarily. A few still disobey, but we punish them immediately when caught.”
“Understood. I’ll investigate this myself. If manufacturing, distribution, or sales are taking place, this city could become a sea of flames.”
Bagan’s warning was not idle. Telling a city lord that the local economy might be destroyed was hardly polite, yet the situation warranted it.
“If that is the case, then it cannot be helped.”
With Gruon’s permission secured, Bagan set down his tea.
“Time is short, so I’ll take my leave first.”
“Go on.”
After their conversation ended, Gruon’s gaze drifted toward Daphne. His concern was only natural.
“Arien, this might require your help. Would you come along?”
Bagan also glanced at the treatment in progress and called for her. Identifying Hwanju immediately would not be easy, after all.
“Please wait a moment. I will generate a clone.”
As though she had anticipated the request, Arien created a perfect duplicate of herself. Both Daphne, who sat nearby, and Gruon, who watched, stared in shock.
“Is… is Miss Arien truly a pharmacist?”
“As you can see, she is the pharmacist assisting with Daphne’s treatment.”
“Arien is a pharmacist.”
When both Bagan and Arien answered so firmly, Gruon could only nod in bewilderment.
“Lord Bagan, I am ready.”
The clone remained behind to continue Daphne’s treatment while the original followed Bagan.
“I’m jealous… having to part with the other Arien……”
Sally, for reasons only she understood, looked genuinely disappointed at leaving the clone behind.